The only way to truly take the pulse of your baseball team and keep things in perspective: 10 games at a time.

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Speechless and numb

On Sunday, Angel Pagan hit a triple. The crowd at Citi Field cheered proudly and loudly, on this last day of the Mets' regular season. When the game was over, the Mets faithful actually gave the team a standing ovation as they walked off the field.

That's the nature of the Mets fan. As much as we've been punched in the face, and as much as we've acted out because of that (remember all the booing last year?), at the end of the day - quite literally at the end of the season - we cheer.

Well, if I was at that game, I would not have done any cheering.

The New York Mets are a monumental disgrace, from top to bottom - from the front office, to management, to coaching, to on-field performance.

Not since 2004 have the Mets had a completely meaningless September. And this year, for the first time since 2004, I found myself, well, not caring. Days even went by in which I didn't even think about the Mets - days in which I forgot to check whether they won or lost. I never would have thought that was possible at the start of this year - a year built on so much promise.

The Mets were bad from 2002-2004, for sure, but there were no expectations those years. This year Sports Illustrated picked the Mets to win the World Series. We had just come off two seasons in a row of brutal collapses. You know the story.

Yes, there were inexplicable and outrageous - both in quality and quantity - injuries. Surely that had a lot to do with why the Mets only won 70 games this year. But the Mets were perfectly healthy in April, and went 13-15. Unacceptable. The Mets led the league in getting thrown out at home plate. Unacceptable. The Mets committed mental gaffes and errors on the field that would make little leaguers ashamed. Unacceptable. The Mets went 20-48 over their last 68 games. I know the team was crushed by injuries to start players, but 20-48? Sorry. Unacceptable.

But more importantly here - management showed an amazing lack of foresight this season. I mean, an AMAZING lack of foresight. I was okay with Minaya not making any roster moves in late May and early June when the injuries started to pile up. I figured the Mets could get along until the All-Star break with what they had. Hell, for a while, they were getting by alright. Delgado and Reyes were supposed to come back by the break, right? Right. Minaya did not make any moves then because he counted on those guys coming back on time. And we know what happened after that. Beltran got injured too. And he was the only Met to return of the big three (Delgado, Reyes, Beltran), and he didn't come back until mid-September. UNACCEPTABLE. Minaya made decisions not to make moves in May and June, counting on his stars to return. This is how badly the Mets are fucked up in the areas of management, training, and medicine. They are completely and utterly dysfunctional. Management did jack shit with this team, and basically just watched it go into the shitter.

For all of this - the horrible record down the stretch of the season, the errors on the field that would embarrass little leaguers, the lack of foresight by the general manager - you would think management would be punished, as in - FIRED. No. Instead, they're rewarded. As we learned from yesterday's press conference with Wilpon and Minaya, both Minaya and Manuel will be back next season. No major changes have been made. More of the same old shit that has gotten the Mets to where they are in the first place.

Fuck you, Jeff and Fred Wilpon. Fuck you. You have no respect for your fan base - in particular for the fans that bleed blue and orange - the diehards.

But I realize I am stuck with you assholes. Because, let's face it, you're not going to be selling the team any time soon. And I'm not going anywhere either. I'll be rooting for the Mets until the day I die. So, I can only hope that you shape the fuck up.

But I have no reason to be hopeful in the short term.

This team is in desperate need of a major overhaul. The only players I care to hang on to are David Wright, Johan Santana, and K-Rod. But, again, it looks as though we are in for more of the same.

At the end of 2007 and 2008, I was crushed. Devastated. Extremely sad. This year I'm just angry, and disgusted, but in a deeper sense - just numb. What makes me even more batty is that I don't really believe that the front office is as angry as I am. They probably made a profit this year, amazingly enough. So what the fuck should they care for? Maybe that's what has to happen. Maybe Citi Field needs to turn into Grant's Tomb in order for these dolts to get the message.